John C. Williams, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, recently gave a speech at the 16th Meeting of the Financial Research Advisory Committee for the Treasury’s Office of Financial Research. He shared his remarks via a teleconference: Good morning. Over the past four months we have experienced a series of unprecedented events. The pandemic, social distancing, and the economic fallout have transformed all of our lives. This summer, many Americans will be grieving the loss of loved ones, and many more will be faced with financial hardship and concern about the uncertainty of the future. Continue reading…

Ravi Menon, Managing Director of the Monetary Authority of Singapore, recently gave a keynote speech via video conference from Singapore. COVID-19 has triggered the sharpest contraction in the global economy since the Great Depression of the 1930s. We can expect a gradual recovery from the third quarter onwards as countries re-open their economies. But there is considerable uncertainty about the strength and durability of this recovery. The trajectory of the economy will be largely shaped by the trajectory of the pandemic – which is itself a significant source of uncertainty. The risk of secondary waves of infection is not trivial. Those countries that have put in place strong safe management measures and a robust regime of testing, contact tracing, and swift isolation of infected persons, are more likely to minimise a second outbreak of infections and sustain their economic recovery.  Continue reading…

by Ahsan Habib

Sanctions cannot bring about success in isolation. The dialogue with the target country must be ongoing, both at the official and diplomatic level and via view exchanges with citizens and opposition groups in the target country. I would like to start with remembering the fairytale (which was quite familiar to me when I was a young child back home in Bangladesh) in which a little girl had a choice of three beds in which she could take a nap. The father’s bed was too hard, the mother’s was too soft, and only the baby bear’s bed was comfortable enough for her in which to fall asleep, finally she picked the bear’s one. Undoubtedly, those who impose sanctions should recall that Goldilocks (that little girl in the fairytale ‘Goldilocks and the Three Bears’) only slept soundly when she found the bed that was neither too soft nor too hard. Sounds weird at the beginning!! Trust me, it’s not weird, but rather relevant. Continue reading…

The Financial Stability Board (FSB) recently published a stocktake of financial authorities’ experience in including climate-related risks in financial stability monitoring. It draws on information provided by FSB member national authorities, international bodies and a workshop with the private sector. The stocktake finds that financial authorities vary in terms of whether – and to what degree – they consider climate-related risks as part of their financial stability monitoring. Continue reading…

The European Central Bank (ECB) recently extended its recommendation to banks on dividend distributions and share buy-backs until 1 January 2021 and asked banks to be extremely moderate with regard to variable remuneration. It also clarified that it will give enough time for banks to replenish their capital and liquidity buffers in order not to act pro-cyclically. This updated recommendation on dividend distributions remains temporary and exceptional and is aimed at preserving banks’ capacity to absorb losses and support the economy in this environment of exceptional uncertainty. This uncertainty makes it difficult for banks to accurately forecast their capital positions. As demonstrated by the vulnerability analysis the level of capital in the system could decline significantly if a severe scenario were to materialise. Continue reading…

Judicial authorities in Germany are conducting an in-depth fraud investigation on the use of more than 200,000 diesel ‘defeat devices’ in cars produced by an international automotive group and international commercial vehicle manufacturer, as well as their subsidiaries. Coordinated searches to gather evidence are being carried out in Germany, Italy and Switzerland. The action was planned and coordinated with the support of Eurojust to ensure secure and efficient information exchanges between involved judicial and law enforcement authorities, agree on joint prosecutorial strategies and prepare operational actions, including today’s searches. The Frankfurt am Main Prosecution Service – Center for Commercial Criminal Matters – is leading the investigation in Germany against a number of responsible people working in the international automotive group. The investigation is focused on the suspicion that diesel engines installed in several car models sold by the company would be equipped with an illegal defeat device.  Continue reading…

With the help of Eurojust and several other national authorities in other countries, judicial and law enforcement authorities in Romania were able to successfully break apart an organised crime group that dealt in drug trafficking. As a result, 15 people were faced with charges and nearly 2 tons of cocaine with an approximate value of €600 million were sequestered. Continue reading…

Amid rapid change, unprecedented new risks, and the growing complexity of organisations, The Institute of Internal Auditors (IIA) recently announced a major update to the widely accepted Three Lines Model. Originally known as the Three Lines of Defense, the model has gained popularity for organising governance and risk management in organisations. However, acknowledging that risk-based decision-making is as much about seizing opportunities as it is about defensive moves, the new Three Lines Model helps organisations better identify and structure interactions and responsibilities of key players toward achieving more effective alignment, collaboration, accountability and, ultimately, objectives. Continue reading…

by Frank Staelens

I would like to explain the regulation’s broad impact and to offer guidance for compliance. Most listed companies and large public organisations already consider whistleblowing management as an important governance mechanism with, in most cases, boards/audit committees being accountable to measure its effectiveness. This group is now moving toward the use of whistleblowing systems beyond reporting wrongdoing and starting to understand that instilling a transparent, “speak up” culture is perceived by stakeholders as a sign of good health. However, many other organisations still have a different position on the subject. But keep in mind, within the EU all member states have until December 17, 2021 to transpose the new whistleblower protection rules into national law.  Continue reading…